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Sunday, October 25, 2009

Just in time for Halloween. Interested in a little paranormal fairy tale romance? There is a full moon, a wolf, magic, and of course, a grown up Little Red Riding Hood!

Here is the blurb:

Garnet Boudreaux is going home. Not back to her nice little apartment in New York City, but to her childhood home in the bayou. She doesn’t want to go, and isn’t certain what will be waiting for her when she arrives. But standing there in the voodoo shop on Bourbon Street, in the middle of one helluva party, she’s told by Madame Madeleine Dupuis that she has no choice. She presses two pouches into Garnet’s hands, wraps a red cape around her, and tells her she must go—and go now—to see to her grandmother.

Max LeBlanc spies the lovely red-head across the street and knows in a heartbeat she is the one. A rougarou always knows when he’s met his mate. Some may call him a lycanthrope, a werewolf if you will, but in Cajun bayou lands he’s known simply as The Rougarou. He’d waited several hundred years for this moment, and for her. There is nothing left for him to do, but mark her and claim her as his mate. Soon.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Move over Kindle and Sony, there is a new eReader on the block. His name is Nook and you can make friends with him right now at Barnes & Noble.

Romance readers are huge buyers of eBooks, so it is no surprise that romance authors and readers are becoming fans of eBook reading devices. I know many of us read on our Blackberries, Smart Phones, and IPAQs. Others read from their laptop (me). And still others love a dedicated eReader. I, for one, have been lusting after a dedicated device for a while now.

I may have just met my new eReader. Nook, come to Mama.

So in case you are Christmas shopping early, Ms. Romance Reader, here is a breakdown of the three popular dedicated eReader devices on the market right now.

Barnes & Noble's Nook

Touted by Barnes & Noble as the worlds most advanced eBook reader, you can pre-order it right now for $259 with free shipping. The reader is not yet available. Besides having access through AT&T’s wireless 3G network or on Wi-Fi to over a million book titles, you can access newspapers and magazines, as well as thousands of free eBooks. The E Ink display makes reading easy and customizable. As it comes you can store up to 1500 eBooks and you can purchase a memory card to upgrade. There are features such as picture and text storage and designer covers. See the Barnes & Noble website for more detailed information.

Amazon

The latest generation (U.S & International wireless) Amazon Kindle now sells for $279 and also uses a wireless 3G network to download books directly into the device from Amazon. It also sports the E Ink, customizable display. Lightweight and portable, as is the Nook above, this Kindle is said to hold the same number of books, about 1500, with access to over 350,000 titles, plus newspapers, magazines and blogs. There are three versions of the Kindle available and prices range from $259 to $489. Visit the Amazon Kindle store for specifics on each version.

Sony Reader

The comparable version for Sony is the Reader Touch Edition™ which currently sells for $299. It can hold up to 350 books without an expansion memory card, which can be purchased. Books can be accessed via Sony’s eBook store or through Google’s public domain titles, and supports multiple file formats. The Reader Pocket Edition™ is also available for $199 and a Reader Daily Edition™ is coming soon. More information about Sony’s Reader devices can be found on its website.

Sunday, October 04, 2009

If you are here, there is a good chance you either write or you read -- probably both. Since this is a writer's blog, you probably come to check out the latest romance writing news, or other ramblings of this author. In order to do that, there is one essential thing you must be able to do -- read.

Sounds easy enough, huh? Not so for everyone. Yes, even in today's world.

CBS national news correspondent Byron Pitts was one of those children who was on his way to being an adult with low literacy. At twelve years of age he was diagnosed as functionally illiterate.

Recently, he released a book about his struggles. Step Out on Nothing: How Faith and Family Helped Me Conquer Life's Challenges tells his story. You can buy his book at Better World Books and by doing so, are also helping others get help learning to read. 100% of the net profit of the sale of the book from the Better World Books website will go to the National Center for Family Literacy to support literacy efforts worldwide.

Byron Pitts was recently named to the board of advisors for the National Center for Family Literacy. You can read more here. Watch and listen to the recent interview with Byron on the CBS Early Show below.

Thursday, October 01, 2009

I've been hopelessly AWOL the past couple of weeks... I know. Chalk it up to fall and school starting and my day job travel heating up. I work in schools nationwide during the school year so I'm getting my body adjusted to time-zone hopping again. Last week was New Mexico, this week Arizona, next week South Dakota and I think Mississippi after that. I'm not sure I want to keep anything further in my head right now!

But I did want to pop in and give you some updates.

My alter ego Mia Jae had a release this week and is also featured on The Romance Studio starting today for the month of October. So, if you get a chance, drop by and check out these links.